Bez Lubala says Saturday was a bitter-sweet day for him after he scored his first Crawley goal, but Reds ended up beaten 2-1 at Carlisle United.
But the former Birmingham midfielder believes there were enough positives in the performance to suggest it will be a positive season for the club.
“We came to take three points so it’s disappointing that didn’t happen,’ he said. “Even 2-1 down at half time we were confident that we could cause them problems out wide, get our crosses in and hurt them. Defensively Carlisle did well against us to be fair.
“But we will build on the performance and gain confidence from it. We have been working hard for six weeks in pre-season and in phases of the game we looked and on a personal note I’m pleased to get off the mark with my first goal.
“League 2 is tough and you have to adapt but Saturday will only give me confidence.”
Reds are back at The People’s Pension Stadium on Saturday for the home opener against Salford City.
Joe McNerney, George Francomb and Ashley Nadesan could all come into contention after missing Saturday’s match.
“It’s not an 11-man squad, we see ourselves as 25 players who could all start,” added Bez. “Salford will be tough next Saturday and everyone in the squad has to be prepared to play. Whatever team goes out, we will be giving 100% for a result. We don’t want anyone coming to Crawley taking three points. It’s a must-win game for us.”
Pictured: Bez gets a hug from Gaby Cioffi after he is substituted in the second half.
